


Mother Dearest.

by UndeadPanda250



Category: Mass Effect
Genre: Abuse, Child Abuse, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Not really bad, Trigger: Suicide
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-21
Updated: 2015-12-21
Packaged: 2018-05-08 01:58:45
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,566
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5479061
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/UndeadPanda250/pseuds/UndeadPanda250
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“Commander Jane Shepard,</p><p>We have gotten multiple messages from a woman who is claiming to be your mother. Usually we would handle these things but she has been consistent. Please drop by C-Sec next time you get a chance to come to the Citadel. I have to admit Shepard. This woman kind of looks like you.  </p><p>Bailey.”</p><p>( No real relation ships. Mainly friendships)</p>
            </blockquote>





	Mother Dearest.

“Commander Jane Shepard,

We have gotten multiple messages from a woman who is claiming to be your mother. Usually we would handle these things but she has been consistent. Please drop by C-Sec next time you get a chance to come to the Citadel. I have to admit Shepard. This woman kind of looks like you.  

Bailey.”

 

     Jane reread the small email over and over again. She even had EDI trace it back to back sure it was the real thing. Never in her time would she have thought her mother would try to contact her. Hell, she didn't even know her mother was even alive. All she knew was she was abandoned at the mighty age of 2 at an orphanage owned by some Miss Holly who wasn't the nicest person in the world.

_A bottle smashed above the kids heads. The contents running down the wall, something she would make them clean up later. Jane held two of the smaller children close to her, protecting them from the wrath of Miss Holly. “ You damned kids! You had to go fuck up your only chance to get out of my hairs. You’re lucky the damn state pays for me to take care of your spoiled asses,” Miss Holly yelled at trio. She lifted her hand and rained her unholy wrath on them. The next time the state came to check on them. They were all wearing concealer and Jane learned how to set a broken bone._

“Shepard. Would you like me to tell Jeff to go to the Citadel,” EDI’s voice rang through the comm in her room. Jane snapped out of her thoughts and ran a hand through her hair.

“ Sure, can you keep this email between us EDI? I really don't want this getting out to the others,” She told the AI who agreed without little hesitation.

_“You piece of shit! Everyone else has left but you. Why can't you fucking behave?! You’re 16 for fucks sake. I bet a Krogan wouldn't even want you! You are just a fucking mistake weren't you? Even your parents didn't want you so you must have been. Not even the REDs wanted you,” Miss Holly sneered. Jane glared at the her home held her head high, not letting the insults getting to her. Miss Holly grabbed Jane by the hem of her shirt, “ Don't you fucking give me that look. How do you even wake up in the morning knowing you will never be more than a street rat?! I bet the alliance wouldn't even take you once they learn about the shit I have to put up,” she yelled pushing Jane against a wall. She easily pushed back against the 30 something woman. “ You have your life, but you don't have take a shit on mine like you have yours. I'm leaving. Try explaining that to the state,” she yelled, running out of the house. Miss Holly managed to hit her with an empty Vodka bottle before she was completely out of site. She wouldn’t pick the glass out of her back and neck for another two hours. Making sure that Miss Holly didn’t follow._

“Shepard we have are nearing the Citadel. Your mental activity has been elevated. Are you okay,” EDI asked, waking Jane up. She yawned an affirmative, cursing herself for falling asleep. She got up and unlocked her door, she got into the elevator and headed for the mess hall. She was greeted by a few of the crew as she walked over to the coffee maker and poured herself a cup.  She leaned up against the counter and sipped on the liquid gold.

_“ You want to join the Alliance huh,” questioned the snobby recruiter behind the desk, sipping away on some fancy imported tea. “ Yes, Sir,” Jane nodded, twiddling her fingers in her lap. “ Well let’s see here, Jane… Jane what,” he asked reading an eyebrow. She thought for a moment before the answered with a wide smile. “ Jane Shepard! You know like the second dude to go to space! Pretty rad huh?”_

Jane smiled at the memory. She put her coffee cup down and called for Garrus and Thane to suit up, because they would be accompanying her. She met them once she was suited up and the Normandy was docked.

“ Shepard, I know this must be a lot coming from a turian who got shot with a rocket but you don't look so hot,” Garrus noted. Thane hummed in agreement as they walked to the C-Sec office. “ Some shit came up. Nothing too big hopefully,” she told them. Bailey greeted them when they walked through the door.

“ So Commander, sorry to get right to business but about that issue. The woman's name is Hannah Riley and DNA is a pretty damn near match. When I told her you were coming she started freaking out, she is in interview room 4 if you want to you know, see for yourself,” Bailey explained.

“ Jane, who is this Hannah Riley? You need to explain to us the situation,” Thane questioned.

Jane was on the verge of a nervous breakdown. “ This.. This woman claims to be my mother and you guys know I never had one so, I brought you two here for emotional support,” she informed them. They both gave her sympathetic looks. She took her guns and handed them to Bailey just to be safe. “ If you guys could stay here, I'd like to go in by myself. Then you can come in,” she told her team, walking to her mother's room.

She knocked on the door and heard a soft “Come in.” She pushed open the door and saw a woman who was probably no more than 20 years older than her. She was sporting high dollar clothes that she was sure only the council could afford. Jane walked in and held her hand out to the woman, “ You must be Hannah Riley. Nice to meet you Ma’am.” “Nice to meet you too Jane. You have probably heard the results of the tests. You may call me mother if you like,” she told her, shaking her hand. Jane gave her a sympathetic smile, but becoming self-conscious of her scars, “ Sorry Ma’am, I didn’t grow up calling someone mother so it will take me a while before I do it now.”  Her mother seemed a bit taken back, her smile failing for just a moment before returning once again. “ I am so sorry about that dear. My husbands political life was just kicking off and he would have known the minute you were born that you weren’t his. It was a silly affair that ended as soon as it started. Could you have imagined what he would have done to me? Would’ve kicked me out onto the streets with nothing but a thousand credits. You my dear seem to have done well in the home though. Look at where you are now,” she beamed. Jane couldn’t believe Hannah had told her that so easily. “ So let me get this straight, you left me with an abusive prick because you didn’t want to divorced,” Jane asked. 

Well when you put it that way it makes me sound like I am a bad guy. It was either you or me and you were too old to be aborted by the time I found out I was carrying you. At least you had a roof over your head darling! You could have been living under a bridge like all the others. Now we must talk about the future. When I told my husband that you were my child he almost had another heart attack, started talked about how he could forget about the whole little affair if you supported the family company. You could get 15% of the profits and… wait were are you going,” she yells, standing up and grabbing Jane’s arm as she tried to leave.

“I learn who my mother is and I figure out she is a selfish bitch, and after she tells me she wanted to abort me she tries to get rich off of me. Now don’t get me wrong, ever since I was younger I dreamed of my meeting my mother. That she would come save me from that fucking hellhole were if you breathed the wrong way we would get the shit beat out of us. I dreamed that you would burst through the doors and swoop me up in your arms and take me away. Instead I was met with life, so if you will excuse me ma’am, the weight of the whole fucking universe is on my shoulders,” Jane yelled, pulling her arm away and slamming the door shut. Thane and Garrus snapped their heads over towards her and she swore she could see them reach for their weapons. She walked over and grabbed her guns from Bailey’s desk. 

“Jane come back here, right now! I’m sorry,” Hannah called out as she stumbled over her heels. Jane feels the tears she was holding drip down her face. She slaps a heat sink into her favorite gun and aims it right at Hannah who stops dead in her tracks. “ See this? This is called a gun. That’s what I learned as a kid. I didn’t learn my fucking ABC’s or how to do fucking math. I learned that if someone points this at you then do what they say. Now go back into that room and don’t call me Jane again or else I’ll be calling you dead,” she warns. Hannah sprints back to her room. Jane puts the gun back into its holster. 

“Damn Shepard, you okay,” Bailey asks, standing from his desk and placing a hand on her shoulder. Jane nods and wipes a few tears away but they can’t seem to stop flowing. “Shepard, do I need to go in there and kill her? I am sure one murder would be okay,” Garrus told her. “I could do it better,” Thane added. Jane would have laughed if she had known they weren’t joking. “No, I would have already done it. I just really need to get away from here. If you guys want to see the footage you can stay… I just really need to leave,” she told them, walking away as fast as she could. Thane following right beside her while she was sure Garrus was getting the footage. 

_“ Shepard! In your records it says you taught yourself instead of going to school,” her drill instructor questioned. “Yes, Sir! My guardian never signed me up for school. I learned from old text books and experience sir,” she told him. “Why the hell did they not sign you up for school? There should have been an investigation,” he told her. “ Miss Holly didn’t give a rats ass sir. She was to busy drinking to even give me a name so I gave myself one. She had connections with someone in social services,” she explained. The instructor gave her a small smile. “ You continue to amaze me Shepard. Now give me two laps around the tracks,” he yelled. She nodded and began her laps._

Thane placed his hand on her shoulder; she noticed they had made it to the Normandy. She still had a few tears fall but she tried her best to wipe them off. “Shepard, I do not know what that wretched woman said to you, but not once have I ever seen you cry, if you wish to tell me what she did I will be here,” he told her, wrapping an arm around her and giving her an awkward hug. She retuned the hug and sighed. “Watch the video. I will probably be in my room,” she told him, walking into the Normandy and going straight to her room. 

_“ We regret to inform the community that Miss Holly Brindle has been found in her home dead to an apparent gunshot wound to the head. She left behind a note that is to go to her former foster children. She has left everything to the state and she had no known living relatives. You may remember some of our earlier stories about the many cases of abuse at her home. None have been proven, yet many witness reports say otherwise. Our hearts go out to her children at this time The oldest and longest resident of the home is reported to be in the Alliance, while the others have all gotten forever homes. Next: Scientists find…” Jane shut off her omni-tool, she falls back onto her bed and stares at N7 poster she had put on the bottom of the top bunk. Her drill instructor comes barging into her room a few hours later because she missed training._

_“ Why are you still in here Shepard? Last time you missed training you had flu and I had to force you to miss,” he asked her, sitting on the edge of her bunk. She turns on her omni-tool and shows him the short news broadcast. He gives her a sympathetic frown. “ Listen, I’ll tell the higher ups, you just take as long as you need,” he told her. She sits up and just hugs him. He can hear her sobbing into his plain white shirt. He can only hug her back before she looks up at him. “Why am I so fucking sad? I should be so fucking happy she’s dead,” she asked him. “ If I know you, it’s probably because you cared more about the damned bitch than you realized,” he told her patting her back._

She avoided everyone’s worried looks as she walked back to her room.She unbuckled her armor and threw it onto the ground. She wanted to go to Omega and drink it dry but she knew not to get drunk like that. Her door opened as she zipped up her hoodie. She looked up and saw Joker walking, well limping, towards. “Joker? What are you do-,” she started but was cut off by him throwing his arms around her. “ So me and EDI were totally not watching through your suits built in camera, but don’t you dare listen to that woman okay? I mean she was a total bitch! She shouldn’t have said anything about you. I mean you have saved the world… no the universe! What? Twice? You’ve even come back from the dead. Pretty much most of your squad already saw the video. Half of them are plotting on ways to kill her while the others are going to Councils way and writing emails about how much of a bitch she is. We all have you back Jane. Don’t forget that…By the way, you were totally bad ass pointing that gun at her. Pretty sure she shit herself,” he told her. She was a bit shocked at first but she finally hugged him back. “Thanks Joker,” she laughed.

Jane and Jeff ended the hug and she smiled at him. “ Now come on, I am pretty sure everyone is either plotting a murder or getting put on a watch list,” he joked, walking her to the elevator. “I am pretty sure both me and Jack are already on one Joker,” she grinned. “But you’ve both saved the world. You’re on the cool list,” he informed her. She took his hat off his head and put it on hers. “ And bitch I am the queen.”


End file.
